Friday, July 3, 2009

Summer of Craft

In another life, before our daughter was born, my husband and I traveled for hours to attend craft workshops in the mountains. And I can tell you, it had to be something really special to get a couple of urban dwellers out of their comfort zone and into the middle of nowhere (and I, of course, mean 'middle of nowhere' in the nicest way).

Letterpress

Geoff learned how to create daguerreotypes and I took a metalsmithing class focused on incorporating treasures collected on my travels. And fresh back from Cuba, I had me some treasures.

Penland School of Crafts is a national center for craft education dedicated to helping people live creative lives. Located in the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina, Penland offers one-, two-, and eight-week workshops in books & paper, clay, drawing, glass, iron, metals, photography, printmaking and letterpress, textiles, and wood. The school also sponsors artists' residencies, community education programs, and a craft gallery.

Jewelry

So whenever summer rolls around, I think of my time at Penland, immersed in the craft I loved with the person I loved the most. That's my kind of summer. I reckon in 10 years or so, we can make it a family trip. Until then, my husband and I take turns flipping through the catalog, remembering and dreaming.

There are still openings in select workshops in this coming session! But, be warned... you'll really, really want to go.

2 comments:

Oh, Shannon - you are such a temptress!!! I would love, love, love to go to Penland right now. That would really be a dream vacation for me, and my very first metalsmithing teacher - Amy Tavern - is one of the artists in residence there. sigh...

Shannon, my Mom studied weaving at Penland, and I've been there many, many times. In fact, when she died this past March, that's where we asked that memorial contributions be sent. I've got their course catalog right here and will be headed down there in the spring.

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